In reopening and maintaining the safe operations of Dunn School, the health and safety of the community remains in the forefront of our planning and execution. The details of the plan in this document are aligned with guidance and mandates issued on July 1, 2022 by the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), which is based on guidance issued on May 27, 2022 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). With this document, we hope to provide transparency to the school community regarding the school’s safety plans. 

“California's path forward will be predicated on our individual, smarter actions, that will collectively yield better outcomes for our neighborhoods, communities, and state. Foundational to this plan: Shots, Masks, Awareness, Readiness, Testing, Education, and Rx.

• Shots - Vaccines are the most powerful weapon against hospitalization and serious illness.
• Masks -Properly worn masks with good filtration help slow the spread of COVID-19 or other respiratory viruses.
• Awareness - We will continue to stay aware of how COVID-19 is spreading, evolving variants, communicate clearly how people should protect themselves, and coordinate our state and local government response.
• Readiness – COVID-19 isn't going away and we need to be ready with the tools, resources and supplies we will need to quickly respond and keep the health care system well prepared.
• Testing - Getting the right type of tests – PCR or antigen – to where they are needed most. Testing will help California minimize the spread of COVID-19.
• Education - California will continue to work to keep schools open and children safely in classrooms for in-person instruction.
• Rx - Evolving and improving treatments will become increasingly available and critical as a tool to save lives.”

The Dunn School COVID-19 Safety Plan will employ the following safety measures:

Face Coverings 

• “No person can be prevented from wearing a mask as a condition of participation in an activity or entry into a school, unless wearing a mask would pose a safety hazard (e.g., watersports).”
• Members of the community may be required to wear masks indoors or outdoors (with exemptions per CDPH face mask guidance) under the following circumstances:
  • COVID infections become widespread within the local community. 
  • Students and employees may be required to wear a mask if they are symptomatic, even if they have tested negative for COVID
  • All employees who have been close contacts of a known case of COVID-19 must wear a mask for ten days, regardless of vaccination status or, whether or not they exhibit symptoms. 

Vaccination 

• Dunn School has asked our entire professional and student community to embrace the ambitious but necessary goal of 100% COVID-19 vaccination status by the start of the 2022-2023 school year. If we successfully achieve this goal, we will have all but eliminated COVID-19 as a health and safety risk for our community.  
• Per Cal OSHA, any unvaccinated or “incompletely” vaccinated employee must submit a negative COVID test weekly.

Hand hygiene

• Teach and reinforce washing hands, avoiding contact with one's eyes, nose, and mouth, and covering coughs and sneezes among students and staff.
• Promote hand washing throughout the day, especially before and after eating, after using the toilet, and after handling garbage, or removing gloves.
• Ensure adequate supplies to support healthy hygiene behaviors, including soap, tissues, no-touch trash cans, face coverings, and hand sanitizers with at least 60 percent ethyl alcohol for staff and children who can safely use hand sanitizer.

Cleaning 

• In general, cleaning once a day is usually enough to sufficiently remove potential viruses that may be on surfaces. Disinfecting (using disinfectants on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency COVID-19 list) removes any remaining germs on surfaces, which further reduces any risk of spreading infection.
• If a facility has had a sick person with COVID-19 within the last 24 hours, clean AND disinfect the spaces occupied by that person during that time.

Visitors to campus

• All visitors to campus must comply with COVID mitigation measures.
• Anyone, including visitors, who has symptoms of infectious illness, such as flu or COVID-19, should stay home and seek testing and care.

Ventilation recommendations

• For indoor spaces, ventilation will be optimized in indoor teaching spaces, following recommendations of CDPH.

Physical distancing 

• In accordance with recent evidence which indicates that in-person instruction can occur safely without minimum physical distancing requirements when other mitigation strategies (e.g., masking) are implemented, physical distancing measures will not continue.  This is consistent with CDC K-12 School Guidance.

Testing of Students and Employees

• Students and members of the professional community are required to undertake a COVID-19 test within the 24-hour period before their return to campus. The Health Services Office has tests available for any students who wish to pick one up before their return to campus.
• Students are not required to do routine testing, but testing is available on campus for all members of the community.
• Fully vaccinated employees are not required to do routine testing, but testing is available on campus for all members of the community.
• Unvaccinated or “incompletely” vaccinated employees (see definition above) are required to submit negative COVID tests weekly.
• Members of the Dunn community who have COVID symptoms must follow the guidelines below.

Staying home when sick and getting tested:

• From CDPH Guidance “Isolation and Quarantine Recommendations for the General Public”
• All persons with COVID-19 symptoms, regardless of vaccination status or previous infection, should:
  • Self-isolate and test as soon as possible to determine infection status. Knowing one is infected early during self-isolation enables (a) earlier access to treatment options, if indicated (especially for those that may be at risk for severe illness), and (b) notification of exposed persons (close contacts) who may also benefit by knowing if they are infected.
    • For symptomatic persons who have tested positive within the previous 90 days, using an antigen test is preferred.
  • Remain in isolation while waiting for testing results. If not tested, they should continue isolating for 10 days after the day of symptom onset, and if they cannot isolate, should wear a well-fitting mask for 10 days.
  • Consider continuing self-isolation and retesting with an antigen or PCR test in 1-2 days if testing negative with an antigen test, particularly if tested during the first 1-2 days of symptoms.
  • Continue to self-isolate if the test result is positive, follow recommended actions below (Table 1), and contact their healthcare provider about available treatments if symptoms are severe or they are at high risk for serious disease or if they have any questions concerning their care.

Table 1: Persons Who Should Isolate       

 Table 2: Close Contacts - General Public (No Quarantine)

• Anyone who has symptoms of infectious illness, such as flu or COVID-19, should stay home and consult their healthcare provider for testing and care.
  • Understanding the symptoms of COVID -19
  • Understanding the Similarities and Differences between flu and COVID-19
• Anyone with symptoms of COVID-19 infection should not return for in-person instruction until they have met CDPH criteria to return to school for those with symptoms.

Campus management plans specific to residential students

• COVID-19 vaccination is strongly recommended for all eligible people in California, including all members of the professional community, students, and adults sharing homes with these members of our K-12 communities. See CDC recommendations about how to promote vaccine access and uptake for schools. Additional California-specific vaccine access information is available on the Safe Schools Hub.
• Dunn School will make every effort to ensure that all eligible students, faculty and staff have ample opportunity to become fully vaccinated.
• All instruction is provided in concert with the Health Officer Order and CDPH guidance. If in-person teaching and learning is prohibited, residential students will participate in on-line courses
• Individuals on campus who display any symptoms or test positive for COVID-19 will be isolated or quarantined in concert with CDPH guidance
• Residential students quarantine in their dormitory rooms. Meals will be delivered from the kitchen.  
• If a boarding student tests positive for COVID, we encourage families to bring the student home, if possible.
• While there are no specific isolation rooms identified on campus for boarding students who become ill with COVID-19, we are able to care for isolated students for the duration of their isolation.

Asymptomatic Persons Who are Exposed to Someone with COVID-19 (No Quarantine)

Recommended Actions

Everyone, regardless of vaccination status.

Persons infected within the prior 90 days do not need to be tested, quarantined, or excluded from work unless symptoms develop.

·       Test within 3-5 days after last exposure.

·       Per CDPH masking guidance, close contacts should wear a well-fitting mask around others for a total of 10 days, especially in indoor settings and when near those at higher risk for severe COVID-19 disease (see masking section below for additional information). Per CalOSHA, this is a requirement for all employees of Dunn School.

·       Strongly encouraged to get vaccinated or boosted.

·       If symptoms develop, test and stay home (see earlier section on symptomatic persons), AND

·       If test result is positive, follow isolation recommendations above (Table 1).